Grotto
by FaithinBones
Summary: Bonesology fanfic challenge: Story must start with the phrase, "This might burn a little."


Bonesology fanfic challenge: Story must start with the phrase, "This might burn a little." Story must end with "and that's why you should always vacuum the grotto."

A/N: Italian grotta, grotto, from Latin crypta cavern, crypt.

I don't own Bones.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

"This might burn a little." Brennan wiped some rubbing alcohol across the scrap trying to make sure to clean the scrape thoroughly before she applied some Neosporin to prevent infection.

Hissing like a badly leaking tire, Booth tried to be stoic about the situation, but failed as the alcohol was irritating the damaged skin. "Why not peroxide?" His question was asked between gritted teeth as he kept his hands on his thighs and leaned over.

"I don't have any." Brennan dabbed once more over the scrape making certain there were no foreign objects embedded in the scrape. "I packed the basics for this vacation not thinking I'd need more medical supplies than what I packed. I could only pack so much and you didn't want to be encumbered with a lot of weight."

Resigned to the fact that he was going to be blamed for the lack of Brennan essentials on this trip, Booth gripped his thighs as Brennan seemed to be obsessed with the need to make sure his scrape was clean. "We're camping Bones. You just take the essentials when you're camping."

"I am merely answering your question, Booth." Brennan screwed the lid back on the small bottle and opened a package of gauze. "I am sorry that I talked you into exploring the grotto. I should have just explored it alone. It seemed like an interesting find and since this area is known for rock hieroglyphs and pottery has been found recently two miles from here, I thought it might be a good idea to make sure that this little grotto was explored."

They were both kneeling in the shade of the rock outcropping and were grateful for the deep shade. The sun was blazing overhead and the temperature in the shade wasn't as sweltering as they would be under direct sunlight. When they had stumbled upon the cave, Booth had stuck his flashlight in the opening and looked inside. The cave didn't seem very big, but he knew looks could be deceiving. He had pointed out the opening in the rock to Brennan and then suggested that they set up their camp next to it. It had been too late to take a look inside since the sun was setting at the time and now Booth had wished they had just ignored it.

Brennan was pleased that they had taken a look inside even though Booth had suffered a minor injury. "It's a good thing we looked inside. We will have to report our findings to the park rangers. They can decide what to do with our findings."

The gauze now taped to his back, Booth carefully lowered his t-shirt over the bandage and flexed his shoulders causing him to grunt. "It stings, but it doesn't really hurt that much and there was no way you were going in there by yourself. We're a team."

Standing, Brennan leaned over Booth and placed her arms around his neck. "You're fine. It's just a scrape. We'll keep it covered with the gauze to keep it clean. It will scab soon."

Booth placed his hands over her hands and knew that he had made Brennan happy with their find. "I'll bet you're happy with my camping trip idea now aren't you?"

Her chin resting on the top of Booth's head, Brennan flicked her gaze to the opening in the rock face. "I am. I don't especially care for desert environments, but it's good to experience new things. You know most of my digs have been in tropical and temperate zones, so I have little experience in desert conditions."

"Well that's why I'm here." Booth was proud of his service in the Army and he had experience in all climate zones except the frigid Arctic and Antarctic areas. He wasn't a huge fan of ice and blizzards, so he was grateful he'd never had to deal with that while in the army. "Of course I didn't mean to turn our camping trip into a dig."

Since Booth's tone of voice was a little mocking and he didn't seem to be happy at the moment, Brennan stood up and walked over to their tent. "It's not really a dig, Booth. I don't plan to disturb what we found. Some Native Americans buried their love ones in secret places and I think this is what this is. The park might cement the opening to keep out any more tourists. This is a sacred place for someone's family. I think we should call the park service and guard the opening until they come."

Rising from his knees, Booth brushed off the dirt from the knees of his jeans and looked around. "We're in shade and we have plenty of water. I can fill our water bottles from the natural spring inside the cave and I have plenty of purification tablets with me. Of course that slime is what made me fall, so I'll just make sure of where I step when I go back inside."

After she retrieved her camera from where she had set it down, Brennan sat down and started to look at the pictures she had taken of the interior of the cave. The shots were clear and they were all she had hoped they would be. "I may not be able to touch the remains and the pots, but I think my pictures came out quite well. Dr. Atcitty at the Jeffersonian will be quite pleased when she sees these photos. She is of Navajo descent and I am certain those pots are of Navajo design." Brennan had unwound a tape measure she carried in her back pack and left it open next to each object she had taken a picture of to give perspective. "I am quite pleased with my documentation."

Amused that Brennan was being so studious, Booth moved over to their tent and retrieved the empty water bottles from their back packs and placed them in a double bagged grocery sack he had carried in his pack. Once he was back outside, he moved back over to the cave opening and turned on his flashlight. "I'll be right back."

"Just make sure you don't misstep this time and please don't step on the bones or the pottery." Brennan was still looking at her pictures. "Oh and watch your head over near the pool of water. I noticed a stalactite near the center of the pool."

"I will." Booth wasn't sure drinking water located next to a dead body was the safest thing to do, but the body was bones and had been where it was for a real long time. Brennan had guessed it was over one hundred years old so he figured any bacteria from the body was long dead. "Call the Park Rangers and let them know about our find while I fill the water bottles. If they're interested they should be here in a few hours."

"Oh I can assure you, they will be interested." Brennan was certain of that.

Oooooooooooooooooooooo

Glad to be home, Booth started to unload the car while Brennan went inside to let Christine and Max know they were home. Separating out some of their bags, Booth carried his first load in the house making sure it included the souvenirs for his daughter and father-in-law. Once inside, he was met by Christine who squealed in delight to see her father. "Daddy!"

Dropping his bags, Booth knelt down and engulfed his daughter into a bear hug. "Hey Honey, did you miss me?"

"Of course, Daddy." Christine always missed her father when he was gone for more than a day. "Grandpa made lasagna last night, but it wasn't as good as yours."

"Hey I heard that." Max appreciated his granddaughter's love for her father, but he made a pretty damn good lasagna even if he had to say so himself. "You had two servings so it couldn't have been too bad."

Amused, Brennan shook her head and walked past Booth to retrieve some of their things from the SUV. While she was gone, Booth handed out the souvenirs and was pleased that their gifts were appreciated. After he carried the bags into the bedroom, he came back and retrieved the bags that Brennan brought in and carried them back to the bedroom. Once that was done he made his way to the living room just in time to hear Brennan brag about their find in the desert. Sitting on the chair near the fireplace, Booth watched the animated way his wife explained finding the skeleton and pottery, but his smile turned to a scowl as she described how he had lost his footing, fell and scraped his back. "Hey you forgot to mention I stepped in some slime near the pool of water."

Sympathetic towards her father's injury, Christine left the couch and walked over to where her father was sitting. Crawling onto his lap, she hugged him. "I'm glad you're okay Daddy."

"Thank you Sweetheart." Booth kissed her cheek and winked at Brennan. "There was a small natural spring in the cave and there was some slime near the edge. Mom took pictures of everything so you can see what we saw."

"Oh boy." Christine clapped her hands and waited for her mother to retrieve her camera. Once Brennan was settled back on the couch, the child sat down next to her so she could look at the pictures. As Brennan slowly scrolled through the pictures, she allowed Christine time to get a good look and answer any questions she might have. Max sat on a chair near the bar and watched his little family talking. He loved the quiet family moments.

When the picture of the skeleton appeared, Christine shook her head. "It's very dirty."

"Well, it's a cave, Honey." Brennan pointed at the dirt floor. "Animals have probably used the cave as a source of water for a long time. The floor not only contains dirt we also observed dried feces too."

"What's feces, Mommy?" Christine turned an expectant face towards her mother, eager to learn a new word.

"It means poop, Christine." Booth smiled at the way Brennan cringed at his explanation, but Booth didn't want a long drawn out explanation of what feces was especially to their nearly five year old daughter.

Christine wisely nodded her head and thought feces was a weird way to say poop. "And that's why you should always vacuum the grotto, Mommy. That way if you or Daddy fall down you won't get dirt or feces on you."

"Good advice Sweetheart." Booth chuckled. "The next time we'll take a vacuum cleaner with us."

Ooooooooooooooooooo

I hope you found this amusing. Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


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